System and method for controlling networked devices and accessing, manipulating and viewing internet and non-internet related information through multiple sessions

ABSTRACT

A system and method are disclosed for accessing, generating, presenting and manipulating Internet and non-Internet related information, data and content, including information netcast over the Internet. The system is also capable of controlling operatively connected, privately networked devices. A number of graphical user interfaces are utilized to facilitate user access, manipulation and control of information, data and content and networked devices. Some of the graphical user interfaces are time and topic oriented, are customizable by the user, and allow for the manipulation of information, data, content and operatively connected networked devices from the graphical interfaces themselves. The system is preferably enhanced through the use of an intelligent, dynamically updated user profile that is fully integrated with the system.

[0001] This application is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 09/287,260 filed Apr. 7, 1999, the contents of which areincorporated herein in their entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] 1. Field of the Invention

[0003] The present invention relates to an interactive software programfor providing access to data on or off the Internet, and moreparticularly, to a software program which allows users to access,generate, present and manipulate an active presentation of sites,sources and services related to the Internet and Internet relatedtechnologies and to control privately networked devices. This access,manipulation and displaying is facilitated by use of a variety ofgraphical interfaces, one of which is a time and topic oriented programguide which displays and organizes Internet and non-Internet relatedbroadcasts, information, data and content.

[0004] 2. Background

[0005] The use of the Internet and the World Wide Web (the “Web”) iscontinuing to expand at an exponential rate. Indeed, content iscontinuously added to and otherwise made available to users, new usersare logging on every day to search and view this information, and newsystems are being developed and linked to the Internet to take advantageof this information and content. As a result, the already vast anddiverse types of information residing on the Web grow larger every day.

[0006] Today, accessing this vast storehouse of information isaccomplished through the use of Web browsers which provide user-friendlygraphical user interfaces by which everyday users may access andmanipulate information on the Web. A browser functions on apoint-to-point basis by contacting a web site and obtaining informationfrom the site in the form of web page. This information is retrievedthrough the use of one or more search engines which attempt to identify,obtain and organize what is likely to be the most relevant informationrequested by the user on a specific the topic, based on the user'sspecific inquiry and search parameters.

[0007] Retrieved web pages often contain hypertext or hypermedia linksby which users can access related textual and audio, video, graphicanimation and other active content, respectively. The presentation ofgraphical and audio active content on the Web is very recentdevelopment. Other recent developments include the proliferation of“push” and “netcasting” technology. Push technology allows users whosubscribe to a push service to receive periodic updates ofpredetermined, user-designated information of interest to the user. Theservice software makes automatic, periodic queries to sites containinginformation relevant to the user's requests, to see if there exists new,pertinent information on the subscribed to topics. If so, the service“pulls” the new information from the remote site and “pushes” it ontothe user's computer or other display.

[0008] “Netcasting” or “webcasting,” on the other hand, is analternative to traditional Web browsing. Unlike browsing, where users goout on the Web and search for information, netcasting information may bebroadcast over the Internet by a single host such that the data can bereceived by multiple recipients over one or more “multicast channels.” Auser wishing to receive a netcast simply tunes into the proper digitalchannel. Thus, a user's computer acts like a television or radioreceiver. This technology not only has the potential to turn theInternet into a mass-distribution channel for digital information on thesame scale as broadcast television, but also to facilitate theinteraction between the Internet and various types of private networksystems and devices.

[0009] One major disadvantage of the current browser system is highnetwork traffic over the Internet resulting from the combination ofnumerous and repeated site-to-site user information requests and thedownloading of requested information. Other disadvantages are that alltoo often, the information retrieved is not responsive to the user'srequest and not organized in a user-friendly format. Yet anotherdisadvantage arises from the inability of current browsers to permitusers to access, present and manipulate traditional web-basedinformation and the more recent push and netcast information, eitherseparately or in combination. In other words, the current browser systemfor accessing the Internet is ill-equipped to identify, access,manipulate and display traditional Web-based information and thedistribution of Internet and non-Internet programming over digitalInternet channels. Further, the current browser system is equallyill-equipped to control privately networked devices. Thus, variousdrawbacks exist with the current approaches and other known techniquesand methods.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0010] An object of the invention is to overcome these and otherdrawbacks of prior approaches.

[0011] Another object of the invention is to provide one or moregraphical user interfaces (“GUI”) by which users can identify, access,manipulate and view Internet related information, events and services,where such graphical interfaces may be tailored according to a user'spreferences.

[0012] Another object of the invention is to automatically, or upon auser's specific request, access and store hyperlink and hypermediainformation without displaying the related links, Web pages or content.

[0013] Another object of the invention is to display informationretrieved from the Web in various user-friendly formats as acomprehensive, organized whole.

[0014] It is a further object of the invention to create continuouslyupdated user profiles based on a user's Web and non-Web relatedactivities.

[0015] It is a further object of the invention is to identify, access,retrieve and store information and events taking place on the Web basedon a user's profile, either automatically or in response to a user'sspecific command.

[0016] Yet another object of the invention is to provide for the updatesof Web sites based on a user's continuously updated profile, and toalert the user when such updates occur and to provide summaryinformation regarding the updates.

[0017] Yet another object of the invention is to allow users to continuean Internet or off-line session where the user left last off.

[0018] Yet another object of the invention is to scan the Internet fornetcasted programming and other information and events and to displaysuch information and events in a user-friendly, time oriented GUI.

[0019] It is yet another object of the invention to allow for thedownloading of past, present or future Web and non-Web relatedinformation, content and events by means of a user-friendly GUI, eitherautomatically or in response to a user's specific command.

[0020] Another object of the invention is to provide for the access,retrieval and storage of summary or detailed information on the Web forselected objects by merely “highlighting” the objects.

[0021] Another object of the invention is to provide a system and methodby which Web and non-Web related information, content and events areintegrated with television, cable radio and other broadcast programming,information or data.

[0022] Yet another object of the invention is to provide a system andmethod by which Web and non-Web related information, content and datamay be accessed and manipulated by one or more networked devicesutilizing the same system and method, where those devices can be used tocontrol other networked devices.

[0023] These and other objects of the invention are carried out, aloneor in various combinations, according to various embodiments of theinvention detailed herein.

[0024] According to one embodiment of the invention, a standardized yetmodifiable GUI is presented in the form of a grid which illustrates andprovides instant and easy access to numerous applications and functions.The grid may be based on graphical icons text, sound or any combinationthereof. According to one preferred embodiment the standardized GUI gridis touch sensitive and voice activated and responsive.

[0025] According to one embodiment, application which is activated bythe grid is a GUI presented in the form of a Web Program Guide (“WPG”).The WPG displays Web netcasts, non-Web related broadcasts and otherevents and information (collectively “net programming”) in a grid-likeschedule displayed according to, among other things, net and broadcastchannels, and the time of broadcast. The GUI allows a user to moveforward or backward in time to display prior, current and future netprogramming. A user can also obtain information related to theprogramming, such as summaries of a selected program's topic or content.In another preferred embodiment, the system allows for the one-stepdownloading and storage of a net program by simply highlighting the netprogram in the WPG. Alternatively, a user can schedule future downloadsby time, net program, general topic, or user profile.

[0026] Program guides similar in nature to the WPG are available fortelevision and cable broadcasts and radio broadcasts, individually.Alternatively, these information and content guides can be combined andviewed as an organized and comprehensive guide displaying allbroadcasts, information, data and content available on any individualguide. Where appropriate the individual and comprehensive guides in atime and topic oriented format.

[0027] Another feature of the present invention is the ability of thesystem to create user-specific profiles for multiple users based ontheir Web and non-Web related activities. The profiles are continuouslyupdated and evaluated. The system may use a user's profile to notify theuser of forthcoming Web and non-Web events, broadcasts or otherinformation deemed by the system to be pertinent to the user'sinterests. Using this profile, for example, the system can update theWPG with net programming of which the user is unaware but which islikely to be of interest to the user. Preferably, the system downloadssuch programming for subsequent off-line viewing.

[0028] Still another feature of the present invention is the use of auser's profile to identify and notify a user when Web sites of interesthave been modified in a way related to the interests specified by theprofile. In one preferred embodiment, the system provides summaryinformation of the modification so that the user can readily evaluatewhether the change is of import.

[0029] According to another embodiment of the present invention thesystem identifies and downloads related hypertext and hypermedia linksfound in the Web page being viewed by the user, including Web pageslinked to the first and higher tier pages. Preferably, this downloadingtakes place in the “background” and is transparent to the user.Alternatively, the system might automatically download all links withina domain only. Or, the user can specify the number of related linkswhich the system will identify and download. Further, the systemautomatically terminates an Internet connection after downloaded iscomplete. In addition, according to yet another embodiment, thedownloaded information is displayed as a comprehensive whole in a mannerprescribed by the user, such as pages in a book, file card format or anyother manner.

[0030] Yet, another feature of the invention allows the user to continuean Internet or off-line session at the Web page, document or content theuser last viewed prior to terminating the previous session. This may beaccomplished regardless of whether the Web page, document or content isstored on the system or whether the system must connect to the Internetto display the information.

[0031] According to one preferred embodiment, the grid and guide drivensystem is integrated and networked with devices such as home or officeappliances and products such that Internet access and communications canbe initiated and maintained from and through these devices and such thatthe devices can be controlled from various locations.

[0032] Other features and advantages of the present invention will beapparent to those skilled in the art from a reading of the DetailedDescription of the Preferred Embodiments presented below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0033]FIG. 1 is a general depiction of a computer network system inwhich the present invention may operate.

[0034]FIG. 2 depicts a specific example of a client-server architectureby which the present invention may operate.

[0035]FIG. 3 depicts one graphical user interface (GUI) according to thepresent invention.

[0036]FIG. 4 illustrates a Web page and a window containing a sessionlog according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0037]FIG. 5 depicts a GUI according to one embodiment of the presentinvention which illustrates a Web-based program guide.

[0038]FIG. 6 illustrates a computer and communications network systemimplementing a webcast transmission.

[0039]FIG. 7 is a flow chart illustrating the steps by which anintelligent user profile according to the present invention is generatedand implemented.

[0040]FIG. 8 depicts a window of the system containing a log of all Websites and other content stored in the system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0041] The present invention is a comprehensive, integrated softwaretool which provides a user with the means for managing information anddata regardless of type, source or subject. Many of the elements of thesystem of the present invention are shown in FIG. 1. Referring to FIG.1, system 1 is shown to consist of a client 2 on which the guidesoftware application (Guide) 3 resides, having a central processing unit(CPU) 4, local memory 5, communications interface 6, and input/outputinterface 7. The implementation of the present invention is primarilyapplicable in a client-server architecture, although in certain aspectsof the invention there is no server which interacts with the client.Client 2 may be any device with a CPU and other components capable ofrunning the Guide such as, but not limited to, a computer or televisionset-top box. For example, client 2 may be a personal communicationsdevice such as a digital phone or even a refrigerator. For purposes ofthis discussion, however, unless noted otherwise, it will be assumedthat the client is a personal computer which may or may not be connectedto a private network such as an intranet or extranet. The local memoryincludes any storage medium such as, but not limited to, a computer harddrive, random access memory (RAM), compact disc read only memory(CD-ROM), digital video disc (DVD), magnetic disk, cache or similarstorage media. The input/output interface includes any device orinterface capable of providing interaction with the client such as, butnot limited to, a keyboard, keypad, mouse or even a voice recognitioninterface.

[0042] As shown in FIG. 1, client 2 may be connected to informationnetwork 8 directly or through communications network 9. Communicationsnetwork 9 encompasses any communication network capable of interactingwith and providing at least one-way communications where appropriatewith any subset of information network 8, including but not limited tothe Internet 10, any private computer network 11, any broadcastingnetwork 12 whether it be television, cable or satellite based or radiobroadcasting network 13. Client 2 in FIG. 1 also contains communicationsinterface 6 which provides for communications internal to the clientbetween the Guide software application 3, CPU 4, memory 5 and othercomponents internal or operatively connected to client 2. A morespecific illustration of the interaction between client 2 and one ormore of the subsets of the information network 8 is shown in FIG. 2.Such interaction is generally accomplished by way of Guide queries 12for data sent by the client 2 through communication network 9 to aremote server 13 resident on a remote network, in the example of FIG. 2,a server for an Internet Web Site 14. Information, data or other contentis received by client 2 by way of one or more Web server downloads 15.

[0043]FIG. 3 depicts a grid graphical user interface (GUI) 16 of theGuide according to one embodiment of the invention. GUI 16 and the Guidein general may be activated and displayed instantly or relatively so ona display for client 2 as soon as the client has been turned on in thosecases where the client is originally off. Further, according to oneembodiment, any and all startup applications which may be resident onthe client may be loaded and initialized in the background while GUI 16and the Guide in general are shown.

[0044] Referring to FIG. 3, a GUI grid 16 is shown according to onepreferred embodiment with graphical icons representing various subjects,groupings and labels of information. Preferably, it is by GUI 16 thatthe system organizes the information, and applications contained in theGuide. Icon 17 of gird 16, labeled “Last Internet Session: Joe,” forexample, indicates the date of the last Guide session during which auser interacted with Internet network 10. As shown in FIG. 4, selectingicon 17, by any of the input methods discussed above, causes the Guideto display, for example, the last Web page 18 on a particular Web sitethat was displayed prior to the end of the previous session. Preferably,icon 17 will be modified by the Guide to indicate the type of content auser accessed at the end of the previous session. For example, if theuser was last viewing a document off-line prior to signing off on theprevious session, the icon would be modified to indicate this in somefashion.

[0045] Also displayed in FIG. 4 is a window 19 listing the Web pages orfiles 20 that were used during the previous session. Selecting any oneof these listings causes that Web page or file content to be displayed.Preferably, grid 16 also contains icons for Guide based objects such as“e-mail” 21, software applications resident on the client but externalto the Guide, such as Microsoft Word (TM) 22 or any other application orcontent. Selecting any of these icons activates the specific applicationor content. A user may modify grid 16 to either display multiple iconsfor a specific subject where each icon corresponds to a distinct user,or instead an entire grid may created to correspond to a distinct user.

[0046] According to one preferred embodiment, whenever the Guide isconnected to the Internet and accessing a Web page, the Guideautomatically, or upon a user's specific request, accesses, downloadsand stores Web pages or any other content linked to the current Webpage, whether through a textual or graphical hypertext or hypermedialink. This access, downloading and storing process includes allidentification and uniform resource locator (URL) information for therelated links. The access, download and storing process is preferablyaccomplished in the background although some type of indicator may showthat the process is ongoing or completed.

[0047] The number of linked Web pages and sites which may be accessed,downloaded and stored by the Guide may be determined in a variety ofways. According to one preferred method, the Guide is capable ofaccessing, downloading and storing all linked Web pages or other contentwithin a specific Web domain only. After such a download and store arecomplete, the Guide goes off-line automatically, thereby decreasingInternet traffic and facilitating viewing of the downloaded material.For example, if a user desiring to read today's news accesses the homepage for the Washington Post online newspaper, the Guide, according tothe embodiment described above will access, download and store on theuser's client all related hypertext and hypermedia links andcorresponding content which reside on one or more servers within the Webdomain for the Washington Post. In this way, the Guide downloads andstores one day's entire online newspaper without also downloadingunrelated content from another domain.

[0048] For example, the home page of the online Washington Post may haveon it a graphical link to an advertiser's Web domain, such as a link forMastercard (TM) or Charles Schwab (TM). The Guide's intelligentdownloading process, however, will only access, download and store linksto or from the Washington Post's home page that are found and residewithin the newspaper's domain, regardless on whether the content islocated on one or more servers within that domain. Thus, when the Guideautomatically goes off-line, the user can view and read the content ofthat day's Washington Post without unrelated, extraneous content. Thisdownloaded content may them be displayed, viewed and manipulated in anynumber of ways. For example, the content of the newspaper can bedisplayed and viewed with pages being displayed side by side inascending order divided by sections, mimicking real-life, hard copynewspapers, viewed as cascading pages or in any other format, such asthrough the use of drop-down menus, one or more windows, graphical ortextual overlays, and video or audio output, either separately or insome combination thereof.

[0049] As an alternative to accessing, downloading and storing alllinked Web pages or other content within a specific Web domain only, theGuide can access, download and store linked Web pages or other contentwhere the links and content reside on one or more servers in one or moreWeb domains. Additionally, the user may also specify the number of tiersor successive links which the Guide will access, download and store, seta general default tier number for such actions or designate accessing,downloading and storage parameters differently for different Web sites.According to another embodiment of the invention, the accessing,downloading and storage process is implemented using a user's profile.Further, the Guide allows a user to access a Web site from one clientand download and store accessed information and content to anotherclient or remote site.

[0050] All of the above processes described above will typically occurwhenever a user makes a new contact with an Internet Web site. Any andall Internet interaction is logged and stored by the Guide. Using suchan internal log, the Guide can recognize when a user is revisiting a Website previously accessed, downloaded and stored. Preferably, in suchcases, the Guide will scan the Web site and download and store new orrevised information, data or content only before going off-line. Thisnew information, data or content may or may not overwrite preexistinginformation, data or content.

[0051] Referring to FIG. 3, selection of icon 23 of grid 16, labeled“netcasting schedule” or some similar name, brings the user to a GUI 24shown FIG. 5 which displays a Web Programming Guide (“WPG”), a scheduleof netcasted programming broadcast over the Internet. FIG. 5 illustratesone possible layout for the WPG of the present invention. Information,data or programming “netcast” or “webcast” over the Internet isinformation, data, programming or any content that is broadcast over theInternet generally from one or more host Web servers to one or moreclients. Such information may be either audio, video, data or anycombination thereof. Further, the information, data or programming mayoriginate from the Internet or from outside the Internet. FIG. 6illustrates this communication model wherein multiple user clients 25,26 and 27 receive webcast input from host Web site server 28 throughcommunications interface 29. Thus, webcast information and data may bereceived without the need for venturing onto the Web in search ofinformation. Instead, a client of the webcast based system acts like atelevision receiver. This information or data is preferably updateddynamically. Such information and data can include news, weather,sports, financial and other commercial or personal information contentprovided via audio or video streaming or some other means. Thewebcasting of such content or data can provide, for example, live newsbroadcasts, automatic software updates or updated stock quoteinformation. Such content may originate from a source external to theInternet. Such as external source object 30 in FIG. 6. According to apreferred embodiment of the present invention, however, webcastedinformation and data is received and organized automatically andcontinuously, without the need to subscribe to a host Web server or Websubscription service, and not in response to an initial Guide query asshown in FIG. 2. This is far superior to current applications that makeuse of webcast information and data where users must first subscribe toone or more host Web server services which either directly netcast orotherwise transmit such information and data over the Internet oraggregate such information for netcast.

[0052] Referring again to FIG. 3, selection of icon 32 of grid 16,labeled “communications control” will according to one preferredembodiment activate a Web or non-Web linked telephone device. Preferablya display of a standard phone-like representation will appear uponactivation including but not limited to standard numbers, speed dialbuttons, messaging and other control features. Using this display a usercan dial and make outgoing calls. Incoming calls can also be receivedand will preferably be accompanied by a caller-id overlay. According toone preferred embodiment, a user may video conference with one or moreparties should he so desire, assuming that the other parties havecommunications systems with video capabilities. Preferably, the systemwill store all outgoing and incoming calls along with caller-id andother information. The communications control capabilities of thepresent invention are preferably integrated with icon 35 of grid 16labeled “emergency.”Activation of this icon by any means automaticallytriggers and activates the communications control subsystem of thepresent invention to send outgoing calls to user specified entities suchas the police, fire department, hospital or relatives.

[0053] According to another embodiment of the invention, the client 2 isconnected to and integrated with a private network 11 where the privatenetwork one with components consisting of various devices, appliancesand products found in a typical home or office. According to thisembodiment, devices and products such as telephones, refrigerators,exercise equipment and furniture are each equipped with a client 2capable of running and displaying the present invention. In this way, auser can use any and all of the functions of the present inventiondescribed herein from any such device, appliance or product. Preferably,these devices, appliances and products are themselves networked suchthat they can be controlled from any client and point to pointcommunications using the present invention is possible in a household,for example, without requiring an Internet connection. Control of suchdevices, appliances and products is accomplished according to oneembodiment by selection of icon 33 or grid 16 labeled “home/officecontrol panel.” Preferably, selecting icon 33 causes the display of aGUI with visual representations of a user's home, for example. Usinginput/output interface 7, a user can select the devices, appliances andproducts that the user seeks to control remotely. In this way, forexample, a user can select the lighting in a room and increase ordecrease the light levels as he chooses from another location. Accordingto one embodiment, specific devices which a user frequently manipulatesor adjusts can be given there own icon on grid 16. Icon 34 of grid 16,labeled “climate control,” is one such example. In this way, the simplyselection of icon 34 allows a user to directly access and manipulate theclimate control's of a person's home or office directly, without theneed to first access a comprehensive control layout. Further, usinginput/output interface 7, a user cam remotely access the system of thepresent invention and control devices, appliances and products fromanother client.

[0054] According to one preferred embodiment of the present invention,the functionality of the Guide is enhanced by the creation, integrationand use of an intelligent, dynamic user-profile. According to thisembodiment, the user-profile creation and updating process is completelyautomated and does not require, for example, initial user-specific inputof profile parameters. The intelligent user profile, which resides onthe user's client, is generated and otherwise derived from anamalgamation of static and non-static data and sources. For example, thesystem monitors and tracks the user's Internet and Web relatedinteractions with foreign databases and information sources, compilesrelevant data from such interactions and updates the user's intelligentprofile accordingly. Although not required, the user may directly inputprofile parameters directly into the system thereby modifying orupdating the profile.

[0055] The intelligent profiling system and method also obtainsinformation and data used to enhance and otherwise add information to auser's profile by interacting with any local data storage, dependingupon where the Guide application resides or is running. If, for example,the Guide is resident and being run on a stand alone computer, thesystem will automatically scan the computer's local memory, such as thecomputer's hard drive, to determine what programs and applications arecontained in memory. The system will then automatically extractinformation from the programs and applications, store the informationand update the user's profile accordingly. For example, a user may useIntuit Corporation's Quicken (TM) money management software to track hissavings, investments, bills and other similar information. The Guidewill scan, extract and compile data and other information contained inthe application and update the system's user's profile accordingly.Using the Quicken (TM) application example, the system may determinethat the user has made a number of purchases related to gardening asdescribed in the ledger of the user's checking account or credit cardpurchases. The system will extract such information and update theuser's intelligent profile accordingly. In this way, the user's profilewill contain parameters related to gardening, even though the userneither input such parameters directly nor interacted with a Web ornon-Web based data source germane to that topic. In a similar manner,the system might extract all of the stocks listed in the user'sinvestment portfolio as tracked on Quicken (TM). As a further example,the user may have purchased an off-the-shelf software application usedfor generating and tracking one's family history in order to compile afamily tree. The Guide will note the presence of this application andupdate the user's system profile to include one or more parametersdirected to and otherwise reflecting the user's interest in genealogy.Then, when for example, the user is connected to the Internet, thesystem may scan the Web and identify and/or retrieve data andinformation on home gardening or Web sites devoted to genealogy.Similarly, the Guide might independently identify, select or record awebcast or television broadcast on this topic. The Guide is fullyintegrated such that all pertinent aspects of the Guide are updatedaccording to newly identified and obtained information. Thus, forexample, a newly identified profile parameter for gardening might resultin the identification and retrieval of a webcast on the topic ofgardening which will in turn be incorporated into the Guide's WPG, orthe identification and retrieval of a television cable broadcasts on thetopic of gardening which will in turn be incorporated into the Guide'sEPG.

[0056] According to another aspect of the invention, a user's profilemay be updated and otherwise enhanced as a result of intelligentextrapolation. In this embodiment, the system analyzes profileparameters obtained from past or prior Web interactions, user input andlocal storage data mining and extrapolates new parameters based on anintelligent analysis of one or more preexisting parameters. In this way,the Guide acts in an intuitive manner to identify or retrieveinformation or data on topics which the system concludes the user islikely to be interested in, even though the user himself may not knowthat such topics or information exists. The system analyzes the user'suse of these extrapolated topics and information and uses suchinteraction, or lack thereof, as feedback. In this way, the system canlearn the user's preferences and better fine tune its profilingfunction.

[0057] This intelligent profile can interact with Web based and non-Webbased applications to facilitate a user's desired goal or enhance theprofiling aspects of a foreign Web site. For example, a user may visitthe on-line merchant Amazon.com's (TM) Web site for the first time toorder a specific book. After the user's first purchase, Amazon's Website system makes purchase recommendations for other books which theuser might enjoy. These recommendations are based on the book purchasesof others who purchased the same book the user bought and demographicalcomparisons. Such comparison recommendations are inaccurate because theyare based on other individual's actions and seeming preferences and notthat of the purchaser. Preferably, however, the Guide's intelligentprofile will interact with Amazon's database and scan the database forthe names of books and corresponding abstracts to allow the Amazon Website to recommend books that more accurately reflect the user'spreferences. Notably, the information comprising the Guide's intelligentprofile resides on the client at all times such that none of the profileinformation can be captured or otherwise stored or downloaded by aforeign Web site. In this way, the user's profile parameters remainconfidential and secure.

[0058] The Guide is capable of creating, updating and maintainingmultiple, distinct user profiles, such as for different members of auser's household, in addition to a comprehensive user Guide profilederived from the combination of these multiple, sub-profiles.

[0059] Referring to FIG. 5, the Guide allows a user to download andstore a scheduled webcast or other broadcast transmission by direct useof the WPG. Using input/output interface 7, a user can simply select agrid cell in WPG 24 corresponding to the webcast, broadcast or othertransmission the user desires to record and store. According to oneembodiment of the invention, for example, a transmission such as webcastVictoria Secret Fashion Show 31 is selected by pointing to the grid cellcorresponding to that netcast transmission and, for example, clicking onthe cell using a mouse. As shown by the shading in FIG. 5, the grid cellwould preferably change its color to indicate that the transmission isscheduled for downloading and storage. Any number of transmissions maybe recorded using this one-step selection method. According to anotherembodiment of the invention, using for example, the right click of amouse a user could pull up a window by which the user could morespecifically designate desired actions regarding a WPG transmission.Such a window, may include commands to download the transmission once,or in the case of a periodic transmission such as a weekly broadcast,command the Guide to automatically download the transmission each week,no matter what time or digital channel the transmission is broadcast on.As a further example, the window could contain a command allowing forthe e-mailing or transmission of a downloaded program to another user.

[0060] Yet another aspect of the Guide is its ability to update any andall information contained in the Guide based on a user's intelligentprofile. FIG. 8 shows a window listing titles of current Web sites,pages and related documents stored in the Guide from all sessions. TheGuide automatically and periodically scans the Web sites from whichthese pages, documents and content originated and determines whetherthere have been any modification to the pages, documents or content.According to one embodiment of the present invention, this determinationis made based on a user's intelligent profile. Thus, only if the changecorresponds to one or more profile parameters will the page, document,information or data be updated. In the case of a Web page, for example,the Guide will automatically download the newly revised page for theuser's online or off-line viewing, but it will not overwrite theexisting page. In one embodiment of the invention, the Guide willhighlight the new or revised material in some manner, such as by ahighlighting color, underlining, bolding or some similar manner. Thismethod is much more efficient than other updating methods which updateinformation only if a user first joins a Web site updating subscriptionservice, which update information resulting from any change or revisionto a Web page however insignificant, such as the correction of atypographical error, or methods which update information only inresponse to an alert from the manager of a Web site.

[0061] Other embodiments, features and uses of the invention will beapparent to those skilled in the art from a consideration of thespecification, accompanying drawings and practice of the inventiondisclosed herein. Accordingly, the specification and examples set forthabove should be considered exemplary only. The scope of the invention islimited only by the claims appended hereto.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for enabling access of informationobtained from Internet and non-Internet information sources, comprising:providing a graphical user interface comprising a plurality of selectionoptions for selecting operations during a first graphical user interfacesession, the operations including accessing on-line content from theInternet and accessing off-line content; using the graphical userinterface during the first session to perform at least one operation,the at least one operation comprising accessing the on-line content fromthe Internet or accessing the off-line content; terminating the firstsession after the at least one operation; initiating a second sessionusing the graphical user interface; and providing a modified graphicaluser interface for the second session, the modified graphical userinterface including a new selection option for resuming the at least oneoperation.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein a user engages multipleselection operations during the first session corresponding to multipleoperations such that the user was viewing multiple content correspondingto the multiple operations when the user signed off from the firstsession, and further wherein the step of providing a modified graphicaluser interface for the second session comprises providing multiple newselection options for resuming access to the multiple contentcorresponding to the multiple operations.
 3. The method of claim 1,wherein the at least one operation comprises accessing on-line contentfrom the Internet, and the new selection option provides access to theon-line content that was being viewed just prior to terminating thefirst session.
 4. The method of claim 3, wherein the new selectionoption provides access to the on-line content by retrieving Web contentthat was stored in a user computer system.
 5. The method of claim 3,wherein the new selection option provides access to the on-line contentby connecting to the Internet in order to retrieve the Web content. 6.The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one operation comprisesaccessing off-line content comprising a document, and the new selectionoption provides access to the document that was being viewed just priorto terminating the first session.
 7. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising the step of labeling the new selection option according totype of content accessed during the at least one operation.
 8. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the new selection operation indicates theuser who was accessing the content during the at least one operation. 9.The method of claim 1, wherein the graphical user interface providesmultiple new selection options, each new selection option correspondingto a different user.
 10. A graphical user interface generated by aclient application running on a computer, comprising: a plurality ofselection options for selecting operations during a first session of theclient application using the graphical user interface, including aselection option for accessing on-line content from the Internet and aselection option for accessing an offline content from an off-lineapplication; and a resume operation option for resuming access during asecond session of the client application to content that was active whena user terminated the first session.
 11. The graphical user interface ofclaim 10, wherein the content that was active was content from anon-line Internet session, and wherein the resume operation optionprovides access to the content from the on-line Internet session. 12.The graphical user interface of claim 11, wherein the resume operationoption provides access to the content from the on-line Internet sessionby retrieving locally stored Web content.
 13. The graphical userinterface of claim 11, wherein the resume operation option providesaccess to the content from the on-line Internet session by connecting tothe Internet.
 14. The graphical user interface of claim 10, wherein thecontent that was last active was a document from an off-lineapplication, and wherein the resume operation option provides access tothe document.
 15. The graphical user interface of claim 10, wherein thecontent that was active when the user terminated the first sessioncomprises on-line content from the Internet and off-line content from anoff-line application, and wherein the resume operation option enablesaccess to the on-line content from the Internet and the off-line contentfrom the off-line application during the second session.
 16. Thegraphical user interface of claim 10, wherein the resume operationoption is labeled according to type of content that was last active whena user terminated a first session.
 17. The method of claim 10, whereinthe resume operation option indicates the user who was accessing thecontent that was last active when a user terminated a first session. 18.The method of claim 10, wherein the graphical user interface providesmultiple resume operation options, each new selection optioncorresponding to a different user.